Siglufjörður the remarkable herring town turned tourist attraction in the Nothern Region

At Siglufjörður town there are still signs from the old docks visable in the town center

The location of the town is in a beautiful fjord

Siglufjörður is a still a fishing town

The herring museum to commemorate the herring frenzy is a must to visit

The Herring museum in Siglufjörður village

You can still walk a few piers from he time og the herring frenzy

Siglufjörður is a small town in the Northern Region in Iceland

Siglufjörður town is a good town to liv in and is part of Fjallabyggð munipalicity

Siglufjörður has seen some housing development in recent years after decades of stagnation

Siglufjörður is built under a steem mountain slope

Siglufjörður has mostly single family houses

The view over the fjord is spectacular

The view from most houses in Siglufjörður over the fjord is spectacular

There are also many old houses in Siglufjörður

There are also many interesting old houses in Siglufjörður

One of the old streets in Siglufjörður

The church in Siglufjörur was built in 1932

Old houses in Siglufjörður

Siglufjörður houses in the old town

Street at the slope in Siglufjörður town

Health care center in Siglufjörður

Houses from the thirties in Siglufjörður village in the Northern Region in Iceland

Siglufjörður is a small town in the Northern Region in Iceland

The old school in Siglufjörður in Iceland

The old school in Siglufjörður in Iceland northern region

The main street in Siglufjörður is a small town in the Northern Region in Iceland

Geographically the town of Siglufjörður is an isolated place. It is a narrow fjord surrounded by steep mountains. The first road built to connect Siglufjörður to the main road was in 1940 when the Siglufjörður mountain pass opened. But all this has changed dramatically in recent years with a new tunnel from Ólafsfjörður village from the east side, a new hotel, modern restaurants, and large projects aimed at attracting tourism to this beautiful old fishing town. A place to have in mind if you are looking for a place to stay or a place to visit when planing a vacation in Iceland. Although mentioned in the Book of Settlement, settled by Þormóður Rammi, Siglufjörður is seldom mentioned up until the middle of the 19th century when it began to develop into a village. On the other hand, the location has its advantages. For centuries, it was surrounded by valuable natural resources, particularly in the ocean. It was a short distance from rich fishing grounds, often packed with cod and herring.

The center of the Herring frenzy

In the late 19th century and the beginning of the 20th-century, Siglufjörður had some lively trading, and Norwegian entrepreneurs started their first shark catching venture in Siglufjörður. Understanding the value and volume of the massive Herring stock they also started a Herring venture, and Siglufjörður became the primary place of their herring operation; this marked the beginning of the town’s growth and highly fascinating history. Icelanders quickly learned the value of the Herring stock and also started their ventures in that industry. In the first decades of the 20th-century factories for herring-meal production were built left and right, both in the village and on the other side of the fjord. The business was highly profitable, and Siglufjörður became a kind of Klondike town, and the population exploded in the thirties throughout the forties.

Siglufjörður is becoming one of the most excited urban tourist attractions in Iceland

Today the town is not as isolated as in the past and is connected to the main road with two tunnels, one from the west and one from the east. This makes Siglufjörður a perfect place to visit and drive through. The town is one of those highly attractive towns in Iceland that people should visit. In the last century, the town has experienced dramatic changes that can be viewed in the Herring Museum. At one point, it was the busiest place in Iceland during summer and the center of the booming herring industry. At that time, it was the most populated are in the whole country floating with herring entrepreneurs, workers, ships and everything that made up the herring boom. Today it is being transformed into an exciting tourist attraction in an interesting way. A considerable amount of funds is being devoted to hotels, restaurants, ski lifts, golf courses, and museums. The residents are renovating some of the old houses, and the town has finally managed to clean up all the docks that companies built in the thirties and the forties when the herring boom dominated the town.

Today a part of Fjallabyggð municipality

Siglufjörður is now part of the Fjallabyggð municipality after merging with its neighboring town Ólafsfjörður. The Fjallabyggð municipality offers good service with two kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, excellent sports facilities and two swimming pools. Most of the houses were built in the thirties through the sixties, and the houses are heated with geothermal heating. The town has excellent healthcare and good service for the elderly. Siglufjörður also has excellent sports facilities and one of the best skiing slopes in Iceland.

If you are going to visit the Northern Region in Iceland you might be looking for a places to stay. Here you can book from a selection of accommodationin the Siglufjörður region.